The
Gaspee Days Committee at www.gaspee.COM
is a civic-minded nonprofit organization that operates
many community events in and around Pawtuxet Village,
including the famous Gaspee Days Parade each June. These
events are all designed to commemorate the 1772 burning of the hated British revenue
schooner, HMS Gaspee, by Rhode Island patriots as
America's 'First Blow for Freedom' TM.
Our
historical
research center, the Gaspee Virtual Archives at www.gaspee.ORG ,
has presented these research notes as an attempt to
gather further information on one who is known to have
been involved with the the burning of the Gaspee.
Please e-mail your comments or further questions to webmaster@gaspee.org.

Selected
notes:Lieutenant William Dudingston was the
commander of the much-hated, and ill-fated HMS Gaspee at the time
of her demise at the hands of Rhode Island colonists in
June 1772. From simple conventions, we can assume
that the William Dudingston of our concern was likely
about 30 or 40 years old in 1772 at the time of the Gaspee attack. From
the www.ScotlandsPeople.gov.uk
website (₤6 charge to credit card) files we find a
William Duddingston christened 20Nov1740 in
Kilconquhar, Fife, Scotland to James Duddingston and
Margaret Gillespie. The relationship is confirmed
through family genealogical sources at: <http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~hollyweb/duddingston.htm>.
The
Duddingston-Dudingston-Duddingstone line has members
back to the first Crusades. There is a Duddingston
Village on the outskirts of Edinburgh, but the ancestral
home of the clan is typically cited as Sanford (aka St.
Ford) in the County of Fife. In 2012 Graham Johnston, a
historical researcher of Earlsferry, sent along the
following snippet:

I think I have
discovered that the Dudingston family were in fact
landed gentry in 17th and early 18th centuries and
lived in the lands of St. Ford. The
significance of this is that St Ford is, as is or
was Earlsferry, part of Kilconquhar parish so any
births and marriage there would appear in
Kilconquhar parish records.

James'
ancestors had been awarded a barony in the area some
three centuries earlier, but by our William Dudingston's
time the estate had been mostly sold off in bankruptcy
proceedings. But the family was still considered
to be of noble stock.

From the ScotlandsPeople
site we also find that William's parents James
Dudingston and Margaret Gillespie married on 17Nov1735
in Kilconquhar, and they had children: James (jnr)
who died young, John born 1739, William born
1740, Ann, Clara, David and another daughter
all of whom died in infancy, Elizabeth,
Fanny,
Anne,
Sophia, Joanna, Margaret, Clara,
Christian (female),and
James who died 1794.William's brother
John became a Major as a regimental surgeon in the 1st
Regiment of Foot. William Duddingston's mother, Margaret
Gillespie Duddingston, died before 1752. Right: The
small village of Kilconquhar, Scotland in modern
times. Photo courtesy of Karen Ellsworth,
2009.

In searching for the genealogy, most
people found spell the surname Duddingston with 2 middle
d's, and almost all hail from Scotland. We have copies
of documents signed here in America as Dudingston, with
one middle "d". Perhaps William was trying to use a ruse
to avoid his many lawsuits by deliberately misspelling
his name. But he also used the one middle 'd' in his petition
to the King for relief from his
wounds.

County Fife, where Dudingston was born, is a peninsula
of the East coast of Scotland obviously conductive to
maritime pursuits, and is across the Firth of Forth Bay
from the city of Edinburgh, Scotland. From all of this,
we can assume that our Lieutenant William Dudingston
spoke with at least a moderately strong Scottish accent.Left: The
ruins at Chapel Green built 1093, still extant in
Earlsferry, Fife, Scotland. Photo courtesy
of Scott Reekie who
presents a fascinating history of the village athttp://home.bendbroadband.com/scottishheritage/

According to the excellent Navy List database
information kindly provided by CH Donnithorne,
Dudingston was first commissioned in the Royal Navy as a
Lieutenant on 10Oct1759. According to an N.
Rodgers writing in The Wooden World: Anatomy of the
Georgian Navy, p263, for a man to qualify
for a commission as a lieutenant, he was required to
pass an examination after having served a minimum of six
years at sea, two of which were served as a midshipman
or master’s mate. For this to be true, Lieutenant
Dudingston had at least six years of experience at sea
as an officer-in-training and must have entered into the
Royal Navy sometime in 1753, at the tender age of
13. But his first command was that of the Gaspee schooner on
13Sep1768, so we feel the 1759 date more probably
reflects his date of actual entry into the Royal Navy,
and he must have become eligible for Lieutenant sometime
after 1765.According to Gaspee pay records,
Dudingston was assigned to command the ship on
26April1768, and first appeared 13Sept1768.
William Dudingston first came to the attention of
America in September 1768 at which time he took over
command of His Majesty's Schooner Gaspee from his
predecessor, Lieutenant Thomas Allen. In between
this change of command, the Gaspee was refitted in (we think) the
Philadelphia area (maybe even in Rhode Island) from a
single masted sloop to a twin masted schooner.
Dudingston and his fellow officers had both strict
orders and generous financial incentives to intercept
illegal smuggling along the American coast. British
legislation deputized these officers as customs
officials, and they were awarded a share of the value of
any illicit cargo seized by them. According toBlue Water Patriots: The American
Revolution Afloat by James M. Volo (2006) p14, by
these means Dudingston himself supplemented his
relatively meager annual income of £110 as a Royal Navy
lieutenant by an additional £88 in one year alone.
For an account of Dudingston's early dealings with the
Colonists, see GaspeePriorTo1772.htm.
But
it was when Dudingston and the Gaspee entered Narragansett Bay in
February of 1772 that this man really started to receive
notice. His arrogance and deliberateness in
carrying his duties of trade law enforcement soon got
him in hot water. He straight-away stopped and seized
one of the packet sloops owned by the powerful Greene
family in East Greenwich, and he and his crew proceeded
to beat up one Rufus Greene
who commanded her. Dudingston condemned the sloop
and her cargo as a prize of customs enforcement, and
sent the boat to Boston for sale by the Admiralty based
there. This incensed the sea-faring citizens of Rhode
Island, and led to a questioning by Governor Wanton as
to whether Dudingston and his schooner had the authority
to act. That this led up to the destruction of the
Gaspee on June
10, 1772 is all well documented elsewhere. After
receiving surgery by John
Mawney for his wounds during the attack,
Dudingston was placed in a boat and put ashore into the
house of Joseph Rhodes in Pawtuxet Village. There,
after refusing to relate his experiences to to Dep. Gov.
Darius Sessions, he was tended to for a few days by the
well known local physician, Henry Sterling. He was
subsequently removed to Newport to the home of his
attorney, James Brenton, to continue his recovery.
Because of rumored threats to Dudingston, the Royal Navy
later took Dudingston under protective guard to the HMS
Beaver <see
Newport Skirmish>
and he was shipped back to Europe, reportedly continuing
his recovery at a French spa.
In December 1772, Dudingston
petitioned
King George for relief, citing his grievous
wounds, and was subsequently awarded a pension of
£91.5.0 on 15Feb1773 "in consideration of the courage
and conduct shewn by him in defence of the Gaspee
schooner, which was burnt at Rhode Island, in June 1772,
and the severe wounds he received on that
occasion." Dudingston claimed that he lost use of
his left arm, and had a musket ball still lodged in his
groin. In the
American Federalist Columbian Centinel
newspaper of 26Jan1822 (No 4241), page 1 is a letter to
the editor entitled "Of Revolutionary Reminiscences.",
the author claims that, "Duddingston received a ball in
the hypogastrick
region, which ball was never extracted, but worked its
way down near to the right knee, rendering him lame all
his life." "Hypogastric" would be a medical
description of the lower abdomen. It is unlikely that he
was actually shot in the testicles, as he went on to
father four children later in life. The most likely
scenario is that Dudingston was shot once in the left
arm, after which the bullet ricocheted or passed through
into his left groin area containing the femoral artery
and fascia. While John Mawney removed part of the musket
ball, some of it may have remained that then traveled
down to his knee over time.
Upon the loss of a ship, it was obligatory to undergo
Court Marshal proceedings, which commenced in
Portsmouth, England in October, 1772. At this,
Dudingston was acquitted of any responsibility for the
loss <See http://gaspee.org/StaplesAppendices.htm
p134> We next hear from the Boston press that
by November 1772, he was promoted from Lieutenant to
Captain "by his Majesty's express command", <http://research.history.org/DigitalLibrary/BrowseVG.cfm>,
although
the Navy List
cites his date of seniority for Captain to be five years
later, on 19Sept1777.
While all this was going on, the Greene family filed a
series of lawsuits against Dudingston for the loss of
their cargo aboard their sloop back in February 1772.
Apparently arrests warrants were issued, and Dudingston
complained to his superior, Admiral Montagu that he
could not go on land out of fear of being arrested under
Rhode Island law. For complete details on this sideshow,
see Bryant, SW, Rhode Island Justice-1772 Vintage, Rhode Island History,
July 1967 26:3, pp65-71. The Rhode Island Historical
Society has a series of unpublished documents relating
to these actions in its Manuscripts Division under
miscellaneous Gaspee Papers. In this collection we
discover that Dudingston was defended in these suits by
James Brenton, at whose house in Newport he subsequently
recuperated from his gunshot wound to the groin
sustained during the attack on the Gaspee.
Jacob Greene, Nathanael Greene, et al. filed suit
against Dudingston for the amount of ₤295 at the
Inferior Court of Common Pleas held in East Greenwich,
and was appealed to the Superior Court. We have a letter
from the William Checkley to the customs commissioners
that Dudingston was actually served with a warrant for
his arrest related to this suit immediately after the
attack on the Gaspee
<See http://gaspee.org/StaplesAppendices.htm#Top
p113>. The suit was subsequently appealed to King
George III, but was rejected in October of 1772.
By this time, of course, the British were in no mood to
entertain lawsuits regarding the Gaspee which had
since been destroyed. We also note that related to this
lawsuit, RI Chief Justice Stephen Hopkins issued another
warrant for the arrest of Dudingston on October of 1773.
By 18January1776, William Dudingston had apparently
fully recovered from his ordeal, was given a new
command, and in July of 1776 arrived in Halifax, NS in
command of the armed sloop-of-war HMS Senegal <http://research.history.org/DigitalLibrary/BrowseVG.cfm>.
According to the excellent Navy List database
information kindly provided by CH Donnithorne,
Dudingston was subsequently given command of the brand
new sloop-of-war Camelion
from 21Mar1777 through 25Sep1777. He was next given
command of the frigate, HMS Boston in Sept 1777 to July 1782. We
next hear of him, after the conclusion of all
hostilities, in 1784 testimony respecting the limits of
inland navigation in Scotland,
<http://www.bopcris.ac.uk/bop1688/ref1276.html>
(stale link 2009)

Captain William
Dudingston was next examined,
as to the Limits of the Firths of Clyde and Solway;
who informed Your Committee, That he commanded His
Majesty's Frigate The Boston,
for Four Years, in the North Channel of the Firths
of Clyde and Solway

A Firth is a Scottish term for a channel for the passage
of ships. The HMS
Boston was a 32 gun frigate built in 1761.
Dudingston was later promoted to Commodore, and
eventually promoted to Rear Admiral, superannuated on
12Nov1794. The Navy
List gives no further information about subsequent
commands after he left the HMS Boston in 1782. We've thought
that perhaps he was at Trafalgar in 1805 with Admiral
Lord Nelson, but his name is nowhere on the list of
known participants found at http://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/Trafalgar/.
Effectively
he made Admiral by living long enough to reach the top
of the Captain's list. Making people
'superannuated' let the Admiralty promote and retire the
less capable officers, and reach down the seniority list
to promote the more promising candidates. This might be
highly conjectural, but perhaps one reason that this
apparently mediocre officer achieved the rank of Admiral
was a combination of his war-related injuries, along
with the ascendancy of his fellow Midlothian Henry
Dundas, who as Treasurer and First Lord of the Admiralty
gave many patronage positions to his countrymen.
William Dudingston married on 17Nov1802 Antonia
Steuart-Barclay (variations: Antonis Stewart) who was
apparently much younger than her husband, as Will
would've been at the age of 63-67 when they had the
following children: 1. Elizabeth Hay Duddingston
born on 30Nov1803 in Elie, 2, Unnamed male Duddingston
born 1Dec1804 and died 8Dec1804, buried in Elie
Churchyard, 3. William Montague Duddingston born
01SEP1806 in Edinburgh Parish, Edinburgh, Midlothian,
Scotland, and 4. Susan Sterling Duddingston born on
7Nov1807, registered in Edinburgh. Both William Jr's and
Susan's births are listed to a William Admiral
Duddingston and Antonia Stuart, so we can assume that
Will had made Admiral by 1806. It is noteworthy
that our Dudingston conferred to his son the middle name
that is the same as the last name of his Admiral during
the Gaspee Affair, John
Montagu(e). Perhaps there was some relationship
here as we feel it would be highly unorthodox amongst
British traditions to go outside their immediate
families for names, even if just a middle name. In
either event William Montague Duddingston died without
issue sometime before 1839. Interestingly, both of
Will's daughters died in Paris, France, Elizabeth having
married a Mr. Boyd at sometime before she died in 1866;
Susan died unmarried in 1890. Right: Photo
c1950 of Earlsferry House
. William Dudingston had this very impressive
seaside home built in the c1807, but it has since
been demolished. "The most notable part of the house that set
it apart from all other houses in Earlsferry was the octagonal castellated tower above
which was a flag pole. It was impressive to see the
house on the days that the blue and white Scottish
Cross of St. Andrew flew from the mast head."
Photo and information courtesy of Scott Reekie (for
more details, see: http://home.bendbroadband.com/scottishheritage/earlsferryhouse.html)

Judging from his daughter, Susan Sterling Duddingston,
there was likely some relationship between the family
and his banking firm of Goodsall (?) & Sterling, and
it interesting that his wife was a Barclay (as in
Barclays Bank), but both of these things are purely
speculative. Graham Johnston of Earlsferry notes that
(2012):

re his wife you
might be right that she was moneyed – her father
lived in Collarnie Castle see http://canmore.rcahms.gov.uk/en/site/31474/details/collairnie+castle/
and that suggests to me even more that William did
not come from an impoverished background – it would
be unusual for a person to marry into such a family
unless he had some pedigree.

In either
event, Dudingston must have accumulated considerable
wealth by some means or another.
According to his will, he owned two homes; one house
was on Heriot Row, to this day an upscale address
within the center of Edinburgh, Scotland. His
'country" estate in Earlsferry, Scotland was created of
hand-hewn stone with an opulent interior that
continually impressed local citizens up until the house
was demolished around World War II.. Earls Ferry (now
spelt as one word, Earlsferry) is a seaside village in
Will's hometown of Kilconquhar, and is directly
across the Firth of Forth from Edinburgh.
Admiral William Duddingston died27October1817
in Earlsferry, Fife at the age of 76. His
widow,
Antonia Steuart Duddingston died at No. 4 Heriot Row on
19Nov1839.

Afterthoughts...
We found Will's will in the British Public Records
Office: at http://www.documentsonline.pro.gov.uk/
Prerogative
Court of Canterbury and related Probate Jurisdictions:
Will Registers, Effingham Quire Numbers: 606 - 651 Date
19 December 1817. One can see the copy of the will
first hand by paying a ₤3 credit card charge to the
Public Records Office. The text is
difficult, and is from the will and challenges
thereafter, all in the handwriting of a clerk who copied
the document into a bound volume as a master record.

In
the Name of God AmenI William Duddingston, Rear Admiral of
his Majesty's Fleet, residing at present in Earls
Ferry, Fifeshire, being in possession of my
faculties, sound in memory and judgment and
considering the uncertainty of this life I do ordain
this my last will and testament, revoking all former
wills and testaments. I bequeath to God a Soul
polluted with many sins but hope purified by
repentance and trust redeemed by Jesus Christ.
I leave ₤15466 in 5 pr ct Annuities also in the 5 pr
ct 5477 in the public funds the Dividends of which
are reserved by Messrs Hodsoll & Stirling
Bankers in London all this above mentioned propertys
I leave I say to Sir Walter Stirling, Barrister and
Walter Urquhart, Esquire of Baddow in the County of
Essex jointly with Antonia Duddingston my wife in
Trust for the following uses and purposes including
all balances of money that may be in the hands of
Messrs Hodsoll & Stirling or Sr Wm Forbes &
Co in Edinburgh at the time of my decease. That is
to say to pay to my two Daughters Elizabeth Hay
Duddingston & Susan Stirling Duddingston two
thousand pounds each when at the age of twenty one
years at my death they shall receive the Interest of
their portions of my house in house in Heriot Row
Edinburgh and furniture. I bequeath to my wife
Antonia with the power to sell it should she think
it for the Interest of her family the House in Earls
Ferry, Fifeshire. I bequeath with the
furniture to my two Daughters by Contract of
Marriage two hundred pounds per annum was used my
wife's Jointure during her life I now add to it one
hundred more in all. Three hundred pounds per
annum the residue of all my property & Effects
after paying the aforesaid portions to go to my son
William Montagu Duddingston. Should he die before he
is of age his property to be equally divided between
his two sisters, and should either of them die the
remaining sister to have her portion.

Wm. Duddingston Chapel
Green, Earls Ferry, Fifeshire 15 November 1816

Approved Appeared Personally Thomas Archibald
of Elie and Alexander Miln of Elie and jointly and
severably made oath as follows that they know and
were well acquainted with William Duddingston,
Esquire, an Admiral in his Majesty's Navy formerly
of Elie Lodge, and late of Chapel Green, Earls Ferry
in Fifeshire, North Britain deceased, and also with
his manner and character of hand writing and
subscription having often seen him write and also
write and subscribe his name and having now
carefully inspected the paper writing currently
arrived purporting to be the last will and testament
of the said Deceased the same beginning "In the Name
of God Amen. I William Duddingston Rear
Admiral of his Majesty's Fleet residing at present
in Earls Ferry, Fifeshire, being in possession of my
faculties, sound in memory and judgment and
considering the uncertainty of this life I do ordain
this my last will and testament, revoking all former
wills and testaments" Ending "and should either of
the die the remaining sister to have her portion"
Dated Chapel Green, Earls Ferry, Fifeshire 15
November 1816" and subscribed at the bottom of the
first page there of "W. Duddingston" and at the
bottom of the second page and the conclusion of the
said will also subscribed "W. Duddingston" they say
that they do verify and in their conscious believe
that the whole body series and contents of the said
paper writing the date thereon and the subscription
thereto is of the proper handwriting &
subscription of the aforesaid Admiral William
Duddingston deceased. Thomas Archibald,
merchant, and Alexander Miln, Shoemaker of Elie. On the fourth day of December 1817 the
said Thomas Archibald and Alexander Miln were duly
sworn to the truth of aforegoing affidavit
before m Robert Mattman, Magistrate of Elie County
of Fife, North Britain. On 19th December 1817 Admon with the
will annn at the Goods Chaffers and Credits of
William Duddingston an Admiral in His Majesty's Navy
formerly of Elie-Godyr but late of Chapel Green
Earls Ferry Fifeshire North Britain deceased was
granted to Antonia Duddingston widow the natural and
lawful mother wife of him and Curatrix or Guardian
lawfully assigned to William Jr.out after
Duddingston a minor the Son the residuary named in
the said will the use and benefit of the said minor
and until he shall attain the age of twenty
one years being first sworn commission duly to asure
No Exor.

Right:
Warwick historian John Currier portrays our
infamous Lt. William Dudingston during Gaspee Days
each year.Courtesy
of Holly McKenzie (who married into the
Duddingston line of descent--against our advice, we might add) we
have the Settlement Inventory of William Dudingston's
estate taken 4 or 5 years after his passage.

Inventary [sic] Admiral William
Duddingston At St Andrews the fourteenth day of
January Eighteen hundred and Twenty TwoIn
presence
of Robert Low Esquire of Clatto Commissary of St
Andrews Compeared Mr James Stark Writer in Cupar as
procurator for Antonia Stewart alias Duddingston
after designed and gave in the Inventory and Probate
of the Will under written desiring the same might be
recorded in the said Commissary Court book in terms
of the act of parliament which desire the said
Commissary found reasonable and ordained the same
might to be done accordingly whereof the tenor
follows.

Inventory of the Personal Estate of
William Duddingston Esquire Rear Admiral of His
Majesty's Fleet who died at Earls Ferry in the
County of Fife on the twenty
seventh day of October Eighteen hundred and
Seventeen years. Faithfully given up by Mrs
Antonia Stewart otherwise Duddingston his Widow and
Executrix.1
Balance in the hands of Sir William Forbes J. Hunter
and Company Bankers in
Edinburgh upon the day of the Admiral's
death

£95 15 10

2d
Household
Furniture in the deceaseds country House at Earls
Ferry conform to Inventory and Appraisement
thereof by John Currie Licensed appraiser in Elie
dated twenty eighth February Eighteen hundred and
Eighteen which Furniture the deceased
bequeathed to his daughters by his Will dated fifteenth
November Eighteen hundred and sixteen but his Widow
has the Liferent of it be her Contract of
Marriage dated Seventeenth November Eighteen
hundred and Two

£253 2 _

3d
Wines,
Spirits &c and Wearing Apparal in the House at
Earls Ferry conform to
Inventory and appraisement by the said John Currie
dated Sixteenth March Eighteen
hundred and Eighteen

106 10 _

4th Household Furniture in the deceaseds
House in Heriot Row Edinburgh conform
to Inventory and appraisement by David Forrest
Licenced Appraiser dated twenty sixth February
Eighteen hundred and Eighteen to the liferent of which
furniture the widow had right by her marriage
contract and the deceased bequeathed to her the
Property of it by his said will

228
15 4

Sum
£684 3 2

The deceased was also possessed of the
following sums in the Government Funds.

1 £15.466 3 per cent Consols 2d
£5.477 5 per cents

Upon which sums and also on the
foregoing sum which was in Sir William Forbes
and Companys hands and on a small sum of Half pay as
an Admiral which was due to him at his death the
Executrix who proved the will in Doctors Commons,
paid the Duties at the stamp office in London,
several years ago

(signed)Antonia
Duddingston
George
Carphin

At
Edinburgh
the
Fourteenth day of November Eighteen Hundred and
Twenty one In presence of George Carphin Depute
Clerk of the Commissariot of Edinburgh
Commissioner appointed by the Commissary of
Edinburgh for taking the following
Deposition.Appeared
Mrs
Antonia Stewart otherwise Duddingston Relict and
Executrix of the late William Duddingston
Esquire Rear Admiral of his Majestys Fleet who being
solemnly sworn and examined Depones that the said
William Duddingston died at
Earlsferry near Elie in the County of Fife on the
Twenty Seventh day of October Eighteen hundred and
Seventeen and the Deponent entered upon the
possession and management of his personal Estate in
virtue of his will dated "Chapel
Green Earlsferry Fifeshire fifteenth November
Eighteen hundred and Sixteen"
and of letters of administration granted to her by
the Archbishop of Canterbury upon the
nineteenth day of December Eighteen hundred and Seventeen
conform to the said Letters of Administration or
Probate of the Will containing a copy of the
Will under the hands of George and Nathaniel Goitling
and R. C. Cresswell Deputy Registers of the
Prerogative Court of
Canterbury dated the said nineteenth day of December
Eighteen hundred and Seventeen
which Letters of Administration or Probate are now
Exhibited and signed by the Deponent and the
said Commissioner of this date as relative
hereto. That the Deponent does not know of any
Settlement or writing relative
to the disposal of the deceaseds personal Estate or
Effects or any part of them other than that now
exhibited and contained in the said
Probate. That the foregoing Inventory each
page of which is signed by the deponent
and the said Commissioner as relative hereto is a
full and true Inventory of all the personal or
moveable Estate and Effects of the said deceased
William Duddingston wheresoever situated already
recovered or known to be existing belonging or due
to him beneficially at the time of his death and that
the value of the said Estate situated in Scotland is
six hundred pounds and under Eight hundred
pounds. And the Deponent further Depones that the
reason of the present Inventory not having been
recorded within the period
prescribed by Law arose from the Deponents ignorance
of the Act of Parliament made in that behalf
and of the great bulk of the deceased Estate being
vested in Government Securities and managed by
Messieurs Hodsoll and Stirling
Bankers in London whose partners Sir Walker Stirling
Baronet and Walker Urquhart Esquire are jointly
with the Deponent appointed Trustees for her
children by the aforesaid Will and the said Messrs
Hodsoll and Stirling and the
Deponent having hitherto managed the concerns of the
said Estate without the intervention of Law
Agents. All which is truth as the Deponent shall
answer to God

The
foregoing
Inventory and Deposition was presented
by Mr James Nairne Writer to the Signet and recorded
along with the relative deed in the Register of
Inventories kept for the Commissariot of
Edinburgh conform to act of parliament by me Deputy
Clerk (signed) George Carphin.

Yummy
Desserts...
We cannot resist the inclusion here of a family recipe
from Isabella Beeton's
The Book of Household Management <http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/b/beeton/household/chapter15.html>:
which
relates a local favorite (er, favourite, sorry) recipe
for the people from Duddingston Village. The mere
thought of this dish makes Haggis pale by comparison:

Mode.—Clean
the head well, and let it soak in warm water for 2
hours, to get rid of the blood; put it into a
saucepan, with sufficient cold water to cover it,
and when it boils, add the vegetables, peeled and
sliced, and the remaining ingredients; before adding
the oatmeal, mix it to a smooth batter with a little
of the liquor. Keep stirring till it boils up; then
shut the saucepan closely, and let it stew gently
for 1–1/2 or 2 hours. It may be thickened with rice
or barley, but oatmeal is preferable.

Time.—1–1/2
or 2 hours. Average cost,
8d. each.

Sufficient
for 3 persons.

Seasonable
at any time.

SINGED SHEEP’S HEAD.—The village
of Dudingston, which stands “within a mile of
Edinburgh town,” was formerly celebrated for this
ancient and homely Scottish dish. In the summer
months, many opulent citizens used to resort to this
place to solace themselves over singed sheep’s
heads, boiled or baked. The sheep fed upon the
neighbouring hills were slaughtered at this village,
and the carcases were sent to town; but the heads
were left to be consumed in the place. We are not
aware whether the custom of eating sheep’s heads at
Dudingston is still kept up by the good folks of
Edinburgh.